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Nelson's Column Base Jump

Case Study

Brief

CUNNING was briefed to create a high profile PR stunt to help raise awareness for the charity ‘Act for Tibet’.

CUNNING’s primary objective was to create a highly newsworthy stunt that would be featured in all of the major daily newspapers and on the nightly news.

Idea

CUNNING would stage the first-ever base jump from Nelson’s Column. This would be a media first and therefore highly newsworthy. The timing of the stunt coincided with the Iraq conflict, so it was important that the message reflected the political climate. It was decided that the message would be one of rewarding the Dalai Lama for his peace-seeking stance in media saturated with talk of terrorism.

On 9th May with optimum weather conditions, four stuntmen climbed Nelson’s Column, unfurled an Act for Tibet banner and successfully executed the base jump, much to the delight of the assembled media and emergency services.

Result

The stunt generated extensive coverage both nationally and internationally across all media. Print coverage included the front page of the Evening Standard, Daily Mirror and The Times. Broadcast coverage included Sky News, BBC Breakfast, London Tonight and BBC London. London radio coverage included Virgin FM and LBC.

A number of online sites such as bbc.co.uk covered the story, along with several international media outlets.